The Other Side of the Door
by xStart.a.RIOTx
Summary: Based on the song by Taylor Swift. Ash and Dawn have a fight, resulting from Dawn confronting Ash about him thinking Pokemon is more important than anything else, and the results are devastating. Is there any hope of them getting back together? ONE-SHOT.


**Me: Hey! This was supposed to be up by Pearlshipping Day, which was yesterday…but I was busy yesterday, so I didn't have the time to. Arghh, I'm so mad at myself. Bleh. -_-* …But, I guess it's all good now. (:**

**Ash: Why were you busy yesterday?**

**Me: *glares at him* None of your business, okay? Now, why don't you just go somewhere with Dawn or something..**

**Ash: Go somewhere with Dawn? Why would I go somewhere with Dawn?**

**Dawn: *glares at him as well* What's so wrong about going somewhere with me?**

**Ash: *sweatdrops* N-Nothing! Except for the fact that you always take about three hours to get ready…**

**Dawn: WHAT WAS THAT?**

**Ash: *gets scared again* N-Nothing!**

**Me: Wow, you are so bad with girls.**

**Brock: Even I'm way better with him.**

**Me: *rolls her eyes* Um, no. You're not. *whacks him on the head***

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon.

* * *

**The Other Side of the Door**

_Based on the song by Taylor Swift_

"Ash, let's go!" a certain blunette said, tugging on the shirt of a raven-haired Pokemon trainer.

"But Dawn…" Ash trailed off, turning his attention away from the Pokemon in front of him and to the beautiful girl beside him. "We're still not finished with our training session! We've still got a lot to do!"

The two teens were standing in a field that was just outside the Pokemon Center they were staying in. The afternoon sun smiled down on them and their Pokemon, brightening the whole area. Lush green grass was everywhere and under their feet as well. Trees from a nearby forest could be seen in the distance, and the scent of pine and flowers was blown around by the light breeze that came in.

Ash and his Pokemon were in the middle of one of their daily training sessions, working on perfecting their moves and coming up with battle techniques that they could use in their next gym battle. Dawn, with Piplup beside her, just stood by and watched the whole time, being as patient as she could.

'_But we were supposed to have left __**an hour **__ago,' _Dawn thought, frustration entering her.

The blue-haired co-ordinator had planned for her and Ash to go on a date some time soon, and she'd been planning it for a _month. _It would be the first date that they've had in awhile, since they were both so busy with contests and gym battles all the time.

And because of that, she wanted it all to be _perfect_; they'd have a picnic with their Pokemon beside the lake, take a stroll through the town and a nearby park, and then later at night, they'd go stargazing in a secluded field where they'd have their privacy. Well, that's at least how she imagined their "perfect date" to be.

But, even though Ash was her boyfriend now, he still cared about Pokemon more than he cared about _anything else_. Very little of him changed; he was still the same dense, clueless boy they all loved and knew. He was clueless of everything else, whenever it came to Pokemon. And he used to be dense towards subjects like love and crushes— that is, until Dawn knocked some sense into him.

All he ever cared about was the well-being of his friends, his family, and his Pokemon.

Dawn couldn't lie, but that was one of the many things that she loved about him. How he was always so loyal and caring to his Pokemon, other Pokemon, and the people he loved. How he'd put their safety and their needs before his.

But sometimes…it was really annoying, how he'd put Pokemon _first_. Just like now.

"Come on, just a few more minutes, please?" Ash pleaded. He held her hands into his and looked deep into her sapphire blue eyes, his dark brown eyes begging her. This act _always _seemed to work whenever he needed to convince Dawn to side with him.

Dawn almost melted when he stared into her eyes, with that goofy grin on his face. He was always so cute— no, so _handsome!_ With those beautiful eyes, that bright smile that put the night sky to shame, and his wild, shaggy ebony hair; he was just so beautiful altogether, and he didn't even realize it.

But in an instant, she shook it off, and glared back at him. "N-No! That won't work this time!" she protested, yanking her hands away from his.

Ash frowned. "Dawn…"

"Don't you 'Dawn' me!" she yelled, putting her hands on her hips. "I've been trying to get you to go with me on a date for the past _week_! We were supposed to have our date _last week_!"

Ash blushed from embarrassment, and nervously scratched the back of his head. "O-Oh…really?" he breathed, looking down to the ground. "I didn't notice."

Dawn nodded, but still glared at him. "That's right, you _never _notice!" she snapped at him. "You're always so busy training and spending time with your Pokemon that you _never_ have any time to spend with me, or your friends!"

'_And here she goes again,' _Ash thought to himself. Whenever the time came, she'd always rant on how when it comes to Pokemon, he'd never pay attention to anything else but Pokemon.

"But we _need _to train, Dawn!" Ash said. "I need to get Pikachu and them ready for our next gym battle, I can't just stop training or stop spending time with them just 'cause you or anybody else wants to spend time with me! We have a big gym battle coming up, and we need to get ready for it."

Dawn rolled her eyes. "You always say this," she murmured, crossing her arms. It was always about his gym battles, always about getting his Pokemon ready, always about winning the gym badge on the first try.

She shook her head and continued her talk. "And you train _every single day_. What's so hard about making a little space for your friends and your family? What's so hard about making a little space, and spending some time with _me_?"

"Well…"

"Are you saying that I'm not as important as your gym badges and your Pokemon, Ash?"

Ash grimaced, and shook his head. "No, Dawn. You _are_ important," he replied.

Dawn sighed. "Well…if I am important, then why can't you spend some time with me?" she asked, her voice soft. "You've been training from day to night for a whole week now. Don't you think it'd be a good time to rest and relax? And take a break?"

Ash shrugged, his fingers fiddling around with each other. "Yeah, I guess it is a good time—"

"Then why don't you?"

The raven-haired boy scratched the back of his head. "We still have to finish our training session today. We still have to perfect our moves, we're not done yet."

Dawn slapped her forehead. He wasn't getting what she was trying to say, he wasn't listening. "Ugh! Ash, why can't you just take a break today, have our date right now, and continue with your training tomorrow?" she shouted, throwing her hands up in the air. "Why can't you do that? What's so…so _hard _about doing that?"

Ash froze. A silence came between them.

The Pokemon stayed silent as well, and watched the two teens with worried eyes. Especially Pikachu and Piplup, they were worried about what would result from the argument between the two trainers. The tension in the air was so thick, _nobody_ could ignore the fight.

Ash finally spoke. "Because, we _have _to train," he said, his voice raising. "I can't just put my Pokemon and gym battles aside!"

"But you put me, your friends, and your family aside!" Dawn yelled, her voice rising as well.

"'Cause you keep getting in the way!"

"But your friends and your family are just as important as Pokemon!"

"Well, POKEMON IS MORE IMPORTANT!" Ash yelled. He couldn't take her anymore, how she was trying to prove her point and rub it in his face. Why couldn't she just let them have a few more minutes of training time? Why wouldn't Dawn just listen to him?

He continued to shout at her some more. "Pokemon and gym battles are more important THAN ANYTHING ELSE! And more important THAN YOU!"

Dawn clenched her teeth. "Well, if POKEMON'S SO IMPORTANT, then why don't you just STOP TRAVELING WITH ME?" she screamed, her pulse racing. She had never been so irritated in her life. "Why don't you just STOP SPENDING TIME WITH ME?"

She glared at him, her eyes threatening him. "Why don't you just BREAK UP WITH ME?"

Ash paused for a second, but then narrowed his eyes, and moved his face close to hers. Their faces were just inches apart, and both were radiating with frustration and anger. And both of their faces were red from all the commotion and conflict going on.

Both of them were _angry_.

"And what if _I do_?" Ash threatened, staring her down.

Dawn's eyes widened once he said that. _'Is he __**serious**__?' _she thought, tears forming in her eyes.

The blunette slowly turned her head away, unable to look at her love.

She couldn't believe it; he was actually _willing _to give it all up, just for the sake of his Pokemon and his gym battles. He'd rather spend his time with his Pokemon without her in his life than at least try to make some room for her. He was willing to throw away _everything _that they've had and shared _together_. What was wrong with him?

A tear streamed down her face. "That's it…" she breathed out, her voice hoarse. "I've had _enough_."

Dawn turned around, angered, and began to walk back to the Pokemon Center. She couldn't take anymore of this mess. She couldn't handle all the strong emotions starting in her body. If she spent another few seconds fighting with Ash, she knew she'd end up sobbing in front of him; and she didn't want that.

But deep inside…Dawn wished Ash would go after her, and hoped that he'd try to make everything right again.

Realizing what he'd done, Ash called out to her. "Dawn…Dawn, wait!"

Dawn continued walking, and shook her head. "No way, Ash! You've ruined _everything_!"

Ash frowned; he hated to see her so hurt and angry. "B-But I didn't mean what I said!" he reasoned, or at least _tried _to. "I was just so mad, and—"

Dawn stopped, and turned her head to look at him. "Just shut up and leave me alone!" she screamed, tears streaming down her face. "We were supposed to spend the whole night together, but you wouldn't listen to me! It's _over_!"

Ash ran over to her, and grabbed her arm, stopping her in her tracks. "Where are you going?"

Dawn sniffled, and then sighed. "…Back to Twinleaf Town," she finally answered. She couldn't stay in the Pokemon Center with _him _still around, she wouldn't have the courage to face him after the argument that just occurred.

She then turned her head to her partner Pokemon, who was standing in the field with Ash's Pokemon, watching the commotion with worried eyes. Dawn frowned; she hated to see all the Pokemon getting caught up in their argument, it was wrong to fight in front of them.

But there was nothing she could do about it, she couldn't change anything. "Piplup, let's go."

A concerned Piplup hesitantly followed behind its trainer, and waved bye to Pikachu and the rest of Ash's Pokemon. The blunette then walked towards the door, and opened it, letting her partner Pokemon into the Pokemon Center.

She was about to walk in as well, but then Ash ran to her and grabbed her hand, trying to make her stay.

"Dawn, please," he begged. "You can't just leave."

Dawn glared at him, her eyes watering. "And what if _I do_?" she snapped at him, repeating the same line Ash threatened to her minutes ago.

She then slammed the door, leaving a shocked and pained Ash standing in the field,

wondering why he'd said the things he said.

* * *

"Oh, I've ruined _everything_,May!" Dawn yelled, grabbing at her midnight blue hair as if she were about to tear it off her head.

May couldn't help but giggle at her friend's…panicked expression; Dawn was just a mess.

The blunette was pacing her room back and forth, talking to herself about the argument she and Ash had and about how stupid she was. Her midnight blue hair was all ruffled, probably from snatching at it whenever she was frustrated. The colors of the t-shirt and shorts she was wearing clashed with each other, meaning that Dawn was too caught up with her emotions that she didn't notice her clothes clashing. Her whole room was a mess, and there was a pile of Kleenex boxes and tissues beside her bed.

Dawn glared at the brunette. "This isn't funny, May!" she shouted, throwing a tissue at her.

May dodged it and let out a small giggle. "I'm sorry, Dawn," she started, "but you're just a wreck. I mean, look at yourself."

Dawn followed what she said and eyed herself in a mirror over her dresser. She saw a teenaged girl who looked _horrible_. Her eyes were watery, red, and puffy from all the crying and sobbing she'd done yesterday, the day Ash and Dawn had their fight, and today. Her hair was a total mess, and her outfit was mismatched. And she looked crushed…depressed…and hurt.

Dawn sighed, and sat down beside May, who was sitting on Dawn's 'not-made' bed. "…You're right, May," she breathed out. "Oh, I'm just a mess!"

"I guess that just shows how much you miss him."

Dawn gave her a look. "No, I don't miss him!" she told her, a pout on her face. "I'm still mad at him, _a lot_…he always puts Pokemon first, _always_! And I tried to confront him about it…but that didn't work out so well."

The blunette closed her eyes, and the fight flashed through her mind. It was just horrible, she couldn't believe that actually happened between Ash and her. But he just wouldn't listen to her, he still thought that Pokemon was the most important thing in the world; he didn't think that _she_, or anything else, was of the same importance.

Rage stirred in her, but a bit of sadness was there as well. "…He just wouldn't listen to me, May!" she yelled. "He wouldn't listen…he just said Pokemon was more important. He even shouted in my face…said Pokemon was more important…than _me_." Her eyes began to water.

She shook it off, and anger returned to her. "Ugh! I'm so mad at him!" she screamed, crossing her arms.

"But…you still miss him," May added, eyeing the blunette.

Dawn glared at her, but then gradually softened up once she realized what she'd said was the _truth_.

It was true. Underneath all the anger Dawn felt towards Ash, she missed him as much as she was angry at him. Even though it was just a day since they've had their argument, she couldn't help but miss him. She couldn't help but wish he'd come back to her and make everything right again.

But she was too afraid to admit it. Especially to _him_.

Seeing that what she'd said was true, a smile crept up May's face. "So you _do _miss him?"

Dawn sighed, pulling her knees to her chest and hugging them. "Yeah…I guess I do," she whispered, so only that she and May could hear. "But, I'm still mad at him!"

Suddenly, a cell phone went off. Dawn's cell phone. The two girls stopped what they were doing and stared at the pink cell phone that was resting on top of a dresser in the bedroom. Dawn got up and hesitantly walked to the dresser, eyeing the phone's screen to check the Caller ID.

Dawn frowned, yet her sapphire blue eyes lit up. "It's…Ash," she said.

May let out a small chuckle. "That's, like, the hundredth time he's called."

Dawn rolled her eyes. "I know."

"Well, why don't you pick up?" May suggested. "What if he wants to apologize to you?"

Dawn shook her head. "It'll take more than that to get me back."

"Wow, I guess you're really that angry at him."

Just right on cue, a couple loud tapping noises were coming from Dawn's bedroom window, as if something was being thrown at it from the outside. _'…What's going on there?' _the blunette asked herself as she walked towards the window, with May following her from behind.

Both of the girls peered out the window. It was dark outside; the sky was a dark grey, most of the grey coming from the multiple huge clouds that hovered around the sky. And it was raining. Hard. It was as if there were millions of buckets in the clouds dumping water on the ground below them. It wasn't a great time to be outside.

_TAP! TAP! TAP! _Dawn and May gasped once the tapping noises resumed again; they could see…pebbles being thrown at the glass.

"Is…someone throwing _pebbles _at your window, Dawn?" May breathed out, eyeing the window curiously.

Dawn shrugged. "I-I don't know," she replied, and then hesitantly opened the window. And once she looked out the window, an anxious feeling entered her.

"…Ash?"

There, on the front yard of Dawn's house, the raven-haired trainer was standing with his partner Pokemon, Pikachu, perched on his shoulder. They were soaked, badly, from head to toe. And, in Ash's gloved hand were a handful of rocks, which meant that he was the source of the tapping noises that occurred at Dawn's bedroom window.

It thundered; a storm was brewing.

"Dawn!" Ash called out to her, smiling at the blunette.

May rolled her eyes and smirked. "Oh sure, don't pay attention to the girl right beside her," she muttered.

Dawn ignored her. "ASH! What are you doing down there?" she screamed.

"I'm here to see you!" he yelled back. "I need to talk to you."

Dawn crossed her arms. "And what if I don't want to talk to you right now?"

"Then I'll keep waiting here!" he screamed back, a determined look on his face. "I'll wait right here, even if it keeps raining! I won't leave until you come out to talk to me!"

Dawn's eyes widened. "But what if you get sick?" she asked him, a worried tone in her voice.

Ash grinned. "I don't care!" he exclaimed. "I'll do whatever it takes to talk with you again!"

Dawn blushed, she was taken aback. She couldn't believe that Ash would actually do that for her, even after the huge argument they'd gone through just a day ago. Even after he'd told her that she was less important than Pokemon…he was standing in the rain, getting soaked and taking the risk of getting injured, hurt, or sick…just for _her_. Did he take it all back?

The blunette closed the window, and then looked at May. "…Should I talk to him?" she hesitantly asked her.

May smiled. "Yeah!" she replied. "I mean, just look at him! He's been standing outside your window, throwing pebbles just to get your attention, and waiting there in the _pouring_ _rain_ just for you!"

She paused for a moment. "Well…I know Ash has _always_ been reckless like that…but it's just so…so sweet and romantic! How he'd do all that just for you!" she beamed. She then looked off to the side. "I wish Drew could do something like that for _me_…" she muttered to herself. Dawn laughed at that comment.

May laughed as well. "But still!" she continued, beaming at Dawn. "You can't just leave him waiting there, Dawn! You _have _to talk with him."

Dawn sighed, moments of the fight she and Ash had flashed through her mind again. She didn't want to fight with Ash, or ignore him every time she ran into him. She couldn't bear to ignore him for the rest of her life just because of some stupid fight they had. It'd have her heading into a depression…and she didn't want to go through that again.

'_I guess the only way to fix this __**is **__to talk to him.'_

A small, yet slightly uneasy, smile set onto Dawn's face as she looked at May. "Yeah…I guess I'll go talk to him," she said, "since it's probably the only way to get him from throwing pebbles at my window and making all that noise."

May smirked. "Come on, Dawn! You know you really _do _wanna talk to him!"

Dawn rolled her eyes at her, and then peered out the window again. He was still standing there in the rain, waiting for her. He was always so reckless, and so determined. That was another thing that she loved about him, and something that she couldn't resist. It just showed how sweet he was, how caring he was towards the people he loved.

'_So does that mean he still loves me?' _she wondered.

She shook it off, and began to head out of her bedroom and down the stairs, going to the front porch where she'd meet with him. Her pulse was racing, and her breath quickened; she was nervous.

"No need to worry, no need to worry," she repeatedly told herself as she walked.

She finally reached the front door of the house, hesitantly reaching out to the handle to open it. This was it; she'd either make things right with Ash again…or ruin it with another fight between them just because she wanted to prove her point again.

'_Oh, please let things go right this time!' _she wished in her head.

Then after taking a deep breath, she swung the door open and walked out onto the front porch, closing the door behind her.

It was still raining, but not as hard as before. The light pitter-patter noise of the rain helped soothe down the blunette's nervous feeling. She sighed, and then looked out to her front yard. And there was Ash, the determined guy he is, still standing with Pikachu in the rain below where her bedroom window was, waiting for her to come out.

"Ash…" she started to call out to him, "ASH!"

The raven-haired boy quickly turned his head to her once he heard her call his name. Slowly, a smile came upon his face once he saw her. "Dawn!" he called back to her, and he and Pikachu ran from the rain and to the front porch where Dawn was.

"Pika Pika!" Pikachu happily chirped once it came up to Dawn.

Dawn laughed, and bent down to rub the Pokémon's head. "Hey Pikachu!" she greeted back to it. "…Why don't you go inside? You can go and find Piplup, and I'm sure he'll be happy to play with you!" She smiled at him.

Pikachu nodded in reply. "Pi Pika!" he said back, as if saying thanks. Dawn smiled, Pikachu always made her smile. She opened the front door for it and let it inside. Pikachu happily walked in, leaving her and Ash alone in the front porch.

Dawn sighed, and walked to a wooden porch swing and sat on it. She looked up and saw a still-sort-of-soaked Ash standing in front of her. He looked back at her, his dark brown eyes boring into her sapphire blue eyes. The expression on his face was a sorry one, and he looked sort of hurt too.

'_Hurt? Why's he hurt?' _Dawn wondered to herself. _'I should be the one that's hurt!' _An angry mood once entered her again. And then, she realized that she'd been staring at him with an angry face; that probably wasn't the best way to start things out with him.

She blushed from embarrassment and turned away from him, and then motioned for him to sit next to her.

He shook his head. "No, it's okay," he told her. "I'm still sort of wet, and I don't wanna get you wet." So he simply walked and stood beside her, leaning against the white railing of the porch behind him, putting his hands in his pockets and looking down at the ground.

The two remained quiet, it was sort of hard to talk with each other again. After the fight they've been through, and just everything…it was just awkward between the two. And Dawn was still angry at Ash. Although she was happy he'd come back for her, she didn't want to admit it, and she let her anger get the best of her.

She was angry, alright. But she was even angrier that Ash wasn't even trying to talk to her! He came back, he waited for her in the _pouring rain_. But now that she came down, he wasn't even going to say anything? He wasn't even going to _try_?

She sighed, _'I guess __**I **__have to start, since staying quiet the whole time will get us nowhere.' _

She looked up at him. "Ash."

He turned his head and looked at her.

"…Why did you come back?" she asked him. "I mean, I thought you said Pokemon was more important than anything else. And that you'd be willing to stop traveling with me, and be willing to stop…_dating _me." She became weak once she said that.

She didn't like admitting that Ash wouldn't want to be with her anymore. She loved him so much, and she'd done so many things for him. It was hard to let him go, when she's put most of her trust, her faith, and her love into him. In fact, she didn't want to let him go. But at the same time, she was _still_ angry at him.

"Well, right after you left, I tried to train with my Pokemon again," he explained, still looking down at the ground. "But, it just wasn't the same without _you_."

"What…do you mean?"

Ash smiled. "I just couldn't focus anymore without you there, Dawn. I just couldn't. Everything was going wrong and…not the way I wanted it to," he admitted. "And I guess, right there…that was when I realized that _you _were— no, you _are— _the reason that I can do anything. You're the thing that motivates me, that drives me into winning all those gym badges and Pokemon battles, and everything!"

He looked at her, a sweet and smitten look in his eyes, and held his hands into hers. "You're the thing that keeps me going, Dawn."

The blunette stood up, and tried to keep an angry look on her face, forcing away a smile that was about to come upon her lips. "So…does that mean I was right?" she asked him, a hint of bitterness in her tone. "That me, your friends, and your family are _just_ as important as Pokemon?"

Ash nodded, a goofy grin on his face. "Yeah," he answered back.

He moved his head closer. "But _you_; I think that _you're _the most important thing in my life."

And right there, Dawn couldn't take it anymore.

She couldn't stay angry at him, she just _couldn't_. After everything he's done and said; coming back for her, throwing pebbles at her window, waiting for her in the rain, apologizing and saying that she was just as important as Pokemon— no, _more _important than Pokemon, the most important thing in _his life_. It was just too much, it was all so sweet and romantic; she just couldn't stay mad at him forever.

Her eyes began to water. "Really?" she choked out.

Ash nodded. "Yes, Dawn," he replied. "I love you, more than _anything else_."

Dawn looked at him, and smiled. Tears began to stream down her face. "Oh, Ash!" she cried out, and then she broke down crying. She covered her eyes with her hands, and sobs started coming out of her mouth. "I'm so sorry!"

Ash watched her in shock for a few seconds, but then slowly wrapped his arms around her and hugged her. "Dawn, why are you crying?" he asked her, his voice in a hushed tone. "You don't need to cry."

Dawn sniffled and nodded. "Yes, I do!" she said through her sobs. "You have every right to be angry at me!"

"What? Why should I be angry at you?"

Dawn continued crying. "Because, I've been so angry at you, and I started this whole mess! It was _my fault _that we got into this mess! And I thought that it was your fault the whole time," she confessed. "I thought that I was the one who was right. I thought I didn't need you, Ash!"

She let out a few more sobs. "But…I _do _need you, Ash," she whispered. "I _need _you."

She cried some more, burying her face into his chest.

"Dawn…" he breathed out, shocked at what she'd just said.

He then pulled away from her, so that her face would be looking up to his. They stared into each other's eyes, a thing that did a lot. Just staring at each other for the longest period of time, not even feeling awkward with all the silence in the air— well, it was silent, except for the small little sobs and sniffles that were coming from Dawn.

Ash smiled, and then moved his head closer to hers. Out of instinct, Dawn moved her head closer to his.

And then, just in a few moments; they kissed.

It was just amazing, just magical. It was like the kiss was a promise itself, a promise that they'd never let anything like a silly little fight tear them apart. It was a closure to the conflict, fixing up everything that had went wrong between them.

They pulled away, and smiled at each other.

Ash gently wiped away a tear from Dawn's face with his finger. "We won't let a stupid fight like this separate us ever again, promise?"

Dawn nodded, her blue eyes gleaming.

"Promise."

* * *

**Me: Wow, this was the longest one-shot that I've ever written so far.**

**Ash: I know, right? **

**Dawn: Why'd you make me cry so much in the last part?**

**Ash: 'Cause you ALWAYS cry. You cried when you lost that contest before, you cried when you thought you were being a bad trainer…face it, Dawn. You cry way too much.**

**Dawn: *glares at him* Don't make me hit you, Ash Ketchum!**

**Ash: *gets scared and hides behind Kathy (me, haha ;D)* O-Okay! I'll shut up!**

**Me: *laughs* Anyway, I hope this fanfic didn't seem too rushed or too bad. And I hope that there weren't that many mistakes or anything.  
So, please review! Just click the button right under this line! Haha (;**


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